Islanders forward Michael Grabner has been named to the Rookie All-Star roster and will participate in the Honda NHL SuperSkills on Saturday, Jan. 29

Tuesday morning, the NHL announced the final roster for NHL All-Star weekend at the end of this month. On the list was Islanders rookie Michael Grabner’s name, who was one of 12 rookies selected to participate in the Honda NHL SuperSkills on Saturday, Jan. 29.

“I heard the news this morning,” Grabner said. “It’s going to be a nice experience. It’s exciting. We’ll see how it goes.”

Most-likely, Grabner will participate in the fastest skater competition as he has quickly become known for his speed out on the ice, breaking through opponents’ defensive lines for breakaways on multiple occasions.

It was very fitting when he was asked which skill he would most like to participate in and Grabner said, “Hopefully the fastest lap.”

While he scored his most recent goal on an empty net against the Calgary Flames, Grabner has shown that he can score at crucial moments. When the Islanders faced the Montreal Canadiens the day after Christmas, Grabner scored a breakaway goal on Carey Price to bring the Islanders ahead 2-0. With 1:42 left in the second period, the Isles forward stole the puck in the neutral zone and used his speed to get past Alexandre Picard. The Islanders won the game 4-1.

While he had success that game, Grabner has had numerous opportunities since then, only to be stopped by the Islanders opponents’ goaltenders. Through his Twitter feed, @Grabs40 is quickly becoming known as a guy who interacts with the fans and really enjoys being an NHLer. .

Referring to the SuperSkills competition, Grabner jokingly said, “Hopefully I can stay away from the breakaway (shots).”